Zu knows Tessa! He's about to shout a greeting when he notices her tail.
He's not being very sneaky. Does she notice him?
Zu hesitates. Maybe he's with her?--but no, the body language is all wrong for that. Right? Being with Demona has taught Zu something about body language, he likes to think, and their body language doesn't suggest any connection.
Whatever else he or she is, the cloaked stranger looks shady. In this city, shady things get you killed.
Zu doesn't want Tessa to get herself killed.

He jogs over to the adjacent street and tries somewhat ineptly to shadow the cloaked figure that's following his friend.

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 29):

Ok Dacc
Lets see if you notice Zu at all. I am setting the diffculty based on a flat roll of 15 on a D20,aim low! :)

Roll against that and see what you get
This message was last edited by the player at 21:39, Tue 30 July 2019.

In reply to Zu (msg # 30):

So Zu also needs to beat a 15 on a D20 roll
once I have both rolls we will compare. Aim to roll low

Dacc-Dacc continues to follow Tessa, one hand swallowed in his robes to do a futher manual examination of the data crystal.

---

13:51, Today: Zu rolled 15 using 1d20 ((15)).

Sorry. Busy week.

---

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 33):


Ok. Dacc-Dacc sees the young monk first. Although you have never seen him before he seems intent on Tessa and yourself.
This message was last updated by the player at 00:27, Sun 04 Aug 2019.

In reply to Zu (msg # 34):

Same here. Busy week and next week should even be more so


Ok. Zu gets spotted and through the arid and acidic blue smoke of the homeless addicts on the street there is no doubt you have been seen.

Dacc-Dacc furrows their brow a bit.  They reach forward and tap Tessa on the shoulder.  "We have garnered some attention."  Dacc-Dacc inclines their head toward the man following them, standing out from the filthier riff-raff of the street.  His intense staring did not speak at all of minding his own business.  As they continue walking, more alert, Dacc-Dacc directs a device on their wrist toward the pursuer and then studies the faint greenish symbols on small metal rod.

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 37):

Zu sees the person move up towards his friend and then draw something out of its cloak. They were making their move!
"Tessa!" Zu cries in a clear Dawnlander accent. "Get down!"
He dashes toward the nearest wall and sprints up its surface at a diagonal, springing off to hop up to the corner post of an awning and then catapulting himself through space. He lands in the middle of the street and rolls up into a skidding crouch, trying to place himself as much between Tessa and her pursuer as he can manage.
"Stay away from her!" he warns in a growl.

---

Zu's still a little worn down from the trip, so he doesn't have any mechanical bonuses to his Speed Check for moving between Tessa and the person following her. If it requires a roll, here it is:

13:13, Today: Zu rolled 11 using 1d20 ((11)).

---

Dacc-Dacc stops abruptly, but displays no alarm.  Their face is still largely shrouded by their hood.  "Why?  She is guiding me to a potential employer.  I am in her debt."  They slide one foot a half step back, just in a case they need to dodge out of the way.

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 39):

Seeing Zu is no big sirprise to Tessa, but the current situation has put her a bit ,.."flat footed". It's going to take a second or two for her to act which means the two of you can play this out as your characters would in this situation taking all actions and spoken dialog into consideration.

You may RP the scene or roll dice any approach to the situation  is acceptable by this GM. As with all my games anything is possible and I give my players free reign but there always are consequences, some good,..some bad,..some merely ,.."meh".

Zu, caught off-guard by the unexpected response, rocks back on his heels and turns to Tessa to confirm the stranger's declaration.
"Um. Is... Is that--I mean. Is he with. Not, like, with, but... you know what I..."
In embarrassment, he lets his voice trail off into a subsonic mutter. He stands up and scratches the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Uh. Sorry?" he concludes lamely, staring a hole into the ground.

"I am Dacc-Dacc.  By what name are you called?"

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 42):

Tessa steps between the two and says,"This is Zu . He is a member of our original party and now like myself ,he is enjoying the hospitality and employment of Otsgar and others like him." Turning to Zu she adds. "This is Dacc-Dacc a wanderer in the city seeking employment . I offered to bring him to speak with Otsgar.
We are headed there now I understand you,Modellii and the others arrived shortly this very day. Come let us make our way there," she says looking to each of you. She looks to the east as a view into the open desert is possible from her position. Along the horizon the sky looks dark for this time of day. It is then that you notice that a small breeze barely enough to move the fetid air of the street has begun to blow.
Small brightly colored mobiles and wind socks on the upper reaches of vendor stalls while those on buildings and temples seem to be moving with regular gusts. "Lets get there," says Tessa. "There is a sand storm brewing and if what the priestess of Mitra say is true. We are going to have rain, in time for the main festivals!"

Dacc-Dacc bows slightly to Zu, a greeting to a potential co-worker. They prepare to race after Tessa at whatever pace she maintains, if possible.  The data crystal is stashed more securely within the interior pockets of Dacc-Dacc's robes so that it is less likely to be damaged in transit.

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 44):

The wind picks up as you all make your way to the destination. The dry bitter smell of grit and loose sand seeps unto your tongue.

Dacc-Dacc purses their lips at the taste of the desert winds.  They missed the smells of grasses and leather tanning.  Assuming that Tessa knows the safest route to their destination, Dacc-Dacc will try to plan ahead for the best way to restore the data crystal, and what tools might be necessary to do so.  Sadly, the myriad faces in the crowd and the unfamiliar streets, signs, and sights prove too great a distraction for Dacc-Dacc's musings to be fruitful. Their pace following her is unabated.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:59, Tue 20 Aug 2019.

Zu grins sheepishly and bows to his new ally.
"Iadace," he says by way of greeting.
After that, he walks along beside Tessa. His conversation is eager, if awkward. "How have you been? It's been a while since I saw you."

In reply to Zu (msg # 47):

She shrugs, "Better then in a long time. Ever since I started hanging with our mutual friends. I have been doing great. Minus the danger and near misses, I get to still broker info."
She side steps a few passed out homeless and you all step into a somewhat cleaner streets and city area. The smell of cooking and hard working tinged with music and religious hails from high spires.

Dacc-Dacc followed along, observing the neighborhood and behavior of Tessa and Zu.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:47, Mon 26 Aug 2019.

Seemingly unsure of what else to say, Zu nods and replies a little stiffly, "Uh. That's... that's good. Um. You look well."
He's distracted by the unconscious people. More than once, he starts to bend over to check on one of them, but Tessa's relentless pace brings him up short every time.

In reply to Zu (msg # 50):

It is not long before you enter the foreigners district proper and then onto the grounds of Otsgar himself. The multi storied building is sprawling and while constructed as and in the same style as that of the local culture. It and the grounds are ordained with decoration featuring Otsgars. Outside on the grounds a feast and revelry are taking place. With much music,feasting,and dancing. The local time of the veneration of the local gods is in full swing. You all side step the partiers from local bureaucrats playfully arguing among their peers,stopping only long enough to down potent liquors and sample cooked meats. To local men and women of some renown,to the peasant family,blessed by the gifts of Otsagar. Side stepping a troop of temple virgins beginning their routine. You all come to the main door. The large double wooden door,(Those must have cost Otsgar a fortune wood is scarce enough but these doors are three times the height of a man and twice as wide), is guarded by a humanoid of some type.
The doorman is a hulking,crab-like creature who narrows his myriad eyes at you suspiciously and folds three sets of arms across his chitinous chest. Tessa  rolls her eyes and struts up to the doorman. “Hey, we’re supposed to meet someone inside. Get out of the way would you?”
He blinks his eyes in series and flexes his chitinous armour, blowing an exasperated sigh out of his spicules in a shower of salty froth. Then he speaks in a
wheezing voice. “You ain’t comin’ in dressed like that and you ain’t comin’ in with your weapons.”  “And just what’s wrong with how I dress?” asks Tessa.  “Nothing. If you were on stage. As to the weapons, the problem is obvious.” He rattles his hindlimbs against his shell aggressively as you all eye the weapons on your person.

"I have but this knife," states Dacc-Dacc as they slowly remove it from within their robes.  "I am loath to part with it, as it is the only token I have left of my family.  If you have a way of binding it to the sheathe for the time I am here, I would be happy to oblige."

Zu shrugs and unfastens the bracers that hold his snap blades without protest. He kneels down and pulls a dagger out of his boot, then hands all three items over in bland silence.

In reply to Dacc-Dacc (msg # 52):

The doorman body guard nods and places a bio identity tab on it.(No need to worry it's bio degradable and will mark your dagger for a few hours at most).
After collecting all the weapons he waves you all in with a lumpy,red hued claw. His mouth parts and their pretasters clicking and moving quickly.
This message was last updated by the player at 22:46, Fri 30 Aug 2019.